We arrived in Seattle on Saturday. Roger flew to California on business yesterday - will return on Tuesday or Wednesday. Actually, it is a great time for him to be gone. I have 3 days to shop, organize and pack with him out of the way! We are on a countdown to Ireland - leave on Friday!
Great news - my favorite pumpkin spice lattes are back at Starbucks!
We talked with Heather and Samantha the other day - little Miss Emily was in "time out" in her room for scribbling on the walls - this followed putting dirt in the dryer and turning it on!
The fire stories from Texas are so horrific. 1500 homes in Bastrop gone! One of our favorite areas of Texas - the pine treed state parks in Bastrop are destroyed. I heard this morning that the fire is 2/3 contained. Our hearts go out to all those who are re-building their lives there!
Monday, September 12, 2011
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Port Townsend
We drove to Port Townsend on Thursday morning. No scenic views from our campsite here – we are at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds Campground. They allow camping to help pay for the upkeep of the grounds. Glad they do because there was no other options. The 35th Annual Classic Wooden Boat Show was this week-end and the city was bustling.
This was the “real” wooden boat show! We parked the car at the Visitors Center and rode our bikes to the marina and spent the whole day Friday meandering around all the vendors and boats. Most owners let you board and tour their sailboats and yachts. Many of them had their wood trim glistening to a mirror shine. I found one I told Roger to add to my Christmas list! The weather is “Chamber of Commerce” perfect so we were glad we went on Friday and not Sat/Sun. We had lunch at a nice restaurant on the wharf and I’m still savoring the sea scallops I had!
The hand built wooden boats, canoes and kayaks are artistic creations! Most so beautiful I wouldn’t want to put them in the water or risk scuffing their shine! Even the oars were pretty!
It’s a long story but, when were on the houseboat last summer, with my family, my nephew Kirt leaned over the railing to get his hat and fell face first into the mud! Providing great amusement for everyone! We found the perfect T-shirt for him – written upside down on the back – “If you can read this, pull me back in the boat!”
This was the “real” wooden boat show! We parked the car at the Visitors Center and rode our bikes to the marina and spent the whole day Friday meandering around all the vendors and boats. Most owners let you board and tour their sailboats and yachts. Many of them had their wood trim glistening to a mirror shine. I found one I told Roger to add to my Christmas list! The weather is “Chamber of Commerce” perfect so we were glad we went on Friday and not Sat/Sun. We had lunch at a nice restaurant on the wharf and I’m still savoring the sea scallops I had!
The hand built wooden boats, canoes and kayaks are artistic creations! Most so beautiful I wouldn’t want to put them in the water or risk scuffing their shine! Even the oars were pretty!
It’s a long story but, when were on the houseboat last summer, with my family, my nephew Kirt leaned over the railing to get his hat and fell face first into the mud! Providing great amusement for everyone! We found the perfect T-shirt for him – written upside down on the back – “If you can read this, pull me back in the boat!”
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Hoh Rain Forest
We drove to the west side of Olympic National Park and toured the Hoh Rain Forest today. This area gets an average of 143 inches of rain per year! Can you imagine a more dismal place to live? But, we lucked out - it was a beautiful, warm, sunny day. We are afraid we are using up all our good weather days here and won't have any left while we are in Ireland!
We drove through Forks -of "Twilight" fame - didn't see any vampires! We are getting tired of the hilly, winding, twisting roads around here! We took the Straits of San Juan de Fuca Scenic Byway but it wasn't very scenic. Thought we would see the straits and ships but, the trees are so tall and the forests so dense that you just get a few glimpses of water. The loggers - a big business around here - drive like Nascar drivers! You can be driving along enjoying the scenery, glance in your rear view mirror and see nothing but GRILL! They ride your bumper until they scare the hell out of you and you pull over and let them race by!
Some of the pictures are from our campground and Crescent Beach nearby - the rest are of our hike in the rain forest. We hoped to see some elk - we saw elk prints and elk skat but no elk!
We planned to hike here in the campground too but there was a big sign by the trailhead - "WARNING - ATTENTION - COUGAR SEEN IN CAMPGROUND!" We passed!
On our way to Port Townsend tomorrow.
We drove through Forks -of "Twilight" fame - didn't see any vampires! We are getting tired of the hilly, winding, twisting roads around here! We took the Straits of San Juan de Fuca Scenic Byway but it wasn't very scenic. Thought we would see the straits and ships but, the trees are so tall and the forests so dense that you just get a few glimpses of water. The loggers - a big business around here - drive like Nascar drivers! You can be driving along enjoying the scenery, glance in your rear view mirror and see nothing but GRILL! They ride your bumper until they scare the hell out of you and you pull over and let them race by!
Some of the pictures are from our campground and Crescent Beach nearby - the rest are of our hike in the rain forest. We hoped to see some elk - we saw elk prints and elk skat but no elk!
We planned to hike here in the campground too but there was a big sign by the trailhead - "WARNING - ATTENTION - COUGAR SEEN IN CAMPGROUND!" We passed!
On our way to Port Townsend tomorrow.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Sol Duc Falls
We drove farther west into Olympic National Park this morning and have a beautiful campsite on the Straits of San Juan de Fuca (Puget Sound.) The weather is so lovely we feel compelled to get out and enjoy it so we hiked to Sol Duc Falls (pronounced Sole Duck.) We passed a "Salmon Exhibit" on our drive to the trailhead - a cascading falls along the Sol Duc River. It is amazing the fish can swim and jump upstream!
We talked with Megan this evening - we are so concerned about all the wildfires in Texas - Austin and Bastrop especially. They still haven't got them under any kind of control. Pray for rain!
Kyle, Heather and the girls had a fun vacation in Bali. They got to ride on an elephant!! We have pictures of Samantha feeding the elephant but Emily wasn't interested! Both are back in school now. Heather and her neighbor Lesha enrolled Samantha and Claire in an after school Mandarin class on Thursday afternoons. Heather was taking them to school the other day and Claire said she didn't want to learn Chinese and Samantha said "if we do, then we can talk in front of our Mommies and they won't know what we are saying!"
We talked with Megan this evening - we are so concerned about all the wildfires in Texas - Austin and Bastrop especially. They still haven't got them under any kind of control. Pray for rain!
Kyle, Heather and the girls had a fun vacation in Bali. They got to ride on an elephant!! We have pictures of Samantha feeding the elephant but Emily wasn't interested! Both are back in school now. Heather and her neighbor Lesha enrolled Samantha and Claire in an after school Mandarin class on Thursday afternoons. Heather was taking them to school the other day and Claire said she didn't want to learn Chinese and Samantha said "if we do, then we can talk in front of our Mommies and they won't know what we are saying!"
Monday, September 5, 2011
Victoria, BC
We got up early yesterday, drove to Port Angeles and took the 8:20am ferry to Victoria, BC. We took our bikes and spent the day touring around the city and harbor. I was sitting on the ferry trying not to think of the last time I took my bike to an island! I thought of our ferry ride to Hong Kong and Disneyland with Kyle, Heather, Samantha and Emily instead - better memories!
The ferry is huge and the hull was full of cars, trucks and RV's - it's about an hour and a half trip. We were expecting a small, quaint town on the harbor - imagine our surprise to see a big, bustling city! We started the day with breakfast at an outdoor restaurant overlooking the harbor. It was fun watching the yachts, sailboats and seaplanes come and go.
The annual "Classic Boat" show was going on this week-end so there were vendors, musicians and food booths all along the wharf. Many of the boats were open to board - all different sizes and shapes but most had beautiful polished wood surfaces.
We took a city bus out to "Butchart Gardens" in the afternoon. Jennie Butchart started making gardens at her home in 1904. The home now a National Historic Landmark and has restaurants and gift shops but it is still owned by the family. The grounds are incredible with a Sunken Garden (made in a nearby abandoned quarry); a Bog Garden; a Japanese Garden and a Rose Garden. In addition to the gorgeous flower gardens and hanging baskets all the different trees and shrubs make it a lovely place for an afternoon stroll. There is also an antique, hand carved carousel by a lake.
We ended a perfect day with a perfect dinner of grilled salmon at another waterfront restaurant!
The ferry is huge and the hull was full of cars, trucks and RV's - it's about an hour and a half trip. We were expecting a small, quaint town on the harbor - imagine our surprise to see a big, bustling city! We started the day with breakfast at an outdoor restaurant overlooking the harbor. It was fun watching the yachts, sailboats and seaplanes come and go.
The annual "Classic Boat" show was going on this week-end so there were vendors, musicians and food booths all along the wharf. Many of the boats were open to board - all different sizes and shapes but most had beautiful polished wood surfaces.
We took a city bus out to "Butchart Gardens" in the afternoon. Jennie Butchart started making gardens at her home in 1904. The home now a National Historic Landmark and has restaurants and gift shops but it is still owned by the family. The grounds are incredible with a Sunken Garden (made in a nearby abandoned quarry); a Bog Garden; a Japanese Garden and a Rose Garden. In addition to the gorgeous flower gardens and hanging baskets all the different trees and shrubs make it a lovely place for an afternoon stroll. There is also an antique, hand carved carousel by a lake.
We ended a perfect day with a perfect dinner of grilled salmon at another waterfront restaurant!
Cresent Lake
We drove to Cresent Lake on Saturday and hiked to nearby Merrymere Falls. The lake is a beautiful glacier lake with "teal" colored water - reminded us of Lake Tahoe. There is a lovely old lodge on the lake - we got some wine and beer and sat in Adirondack chairs out on the dock and just soaked in the sunshine and the view!
Friday, September 2, 2011
Hurricane Ridge
We traveled on Tuesday to a RV park on Sequim Bay (pronounced Skwim) near Puget Sound and will stay here for a week over Labor Day week-end. We have a great view of the bay and marina and all the boats going by. The route here was, once again, all "S" curves and up and down hills - found myself longing for the never ending, straight roads in west Texas!
The weather here is lovely - as our friend Bob would say "sweatshirts and shorts." The locals say summer just arrived in mid-August!
We drove into Olympic National Park yesterday and hiked on Hurricane Ridge. Summer wildflowers alongside winter snow and gorgeous mountains. The park is huge so we will move westward next week to better see more of it.
We are enjoying a little "down time" - playing catch up with cleaning and business. I got my worst haircut of our travels this week - even had to let Roger trim the back! Wouldn't you know - right before we leave for Ireland! I need to start planning what to pack - miss having an extra bedroom to start laying things out in!
We are going to the Farmer's Market tomorrow. We went to one in Astoria and bought fresh veggies and flowers and ate delicious seafood. Hope this one is as good!
I dragged Roger to see the movie "The Help" last night - he and three other men in a sea of women! Must have been "ladies night out" in Port Angeles! It was good but, as always, I liked the book better!
We are looking forward to taking the ferry and our bikes to Vancouver Island and touring Victoria this week-end. We were shocked at the ferry prices - $92.00 round trip for us and our bikes! Didn't even try to calculate the cost of taking the motorhome!
The weather here is lovely - as our friend Bob would say "sweatshirts and shorts." The locals say summer just arrived in mid-August!
We drove into Olympic National Park yesterday and hiked on Hurricane Ridge. Summer wildflowers alongside winter snow and gorgeous mountains. The park is huge so we will move westward next week to better see more of it.
We are enjoying a little "down time" - playing catch up with cleaning and business. I got my worst haircut of our travels this week - even had to let Roger trim the back! Wouldn't you know - right before we leave for Ireland! I need to start planning what to pack - miss having an extra bedroom to start laying things out in!
We are going to the Farmer's Market tomorrow. We went to one in Astoria and bought fresh veggies and flowers and ate delicious seafood. Hope this one is as good!
I dragged Roger to see the movie "The Help" last night - he and three other men in a sea of women! Must have been "ladies night out" in Port Angeles! It was good but, as always, I liked the book better!
We are looking forward to taking the ferry and our bikes to Vancouver Island and touring Victoria this week-end. We were shocked at the ferry prices - $92.00 round trip for us and our bikes! Didn't even try to calculate the cost of taking the motorhome!
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